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The House
The House is an informal name given to the Hollow possessed by the Motley Trouble Ahead. Trouble Ahead is apparently not the first motley to claim ownership over House, and mysterious omens hang over it. History The house was once owned by the Royal vintner for the second empire, having the given name "Brandywine" for the powerful goblin wine produced in its cellars. Following the establishment of the "Man for all Seasons" position, it was granted to Quinten Morris-Hill as an official residence. It was used by Mrs. Thistle during the Jack the Ripper investigation. The house eventually passed into the possession of Prince Martin and his motley, The Deep End. After the Autumnal Coup, the motley trapped King Henry Carver in the hollow shell of The Mirror of History in the basement. Carver would later claim that The Duchess of Pledges and her allies once attempted to burn the house down with The Deep End inside, but his honesty has been called into question. Slowly, the members of The Deep End were killed off, possibly at the behest of King Henry. Following Martin's death, the motley mostly abandoned the house only returning to question the King. In the Winter of 2009 while exploring the Hedge members of Trouble Ahead discovered the house shortly after swearing the motley oath. Knowing that fate itself delivers the promised of the Oath, the Motley was able to move in and claim ownership. So long as the Motley pledge stays in place, the house belongs to the members of Trouble Ahead. Layout The house layout is somewhat confusing. While some floors clearly have enough space to fit all the rooms, some (like the second floor) clearly do not. In addition, there are whole spaces without visible doors to enter them and other spaces with doors where they appear on one side of the wall but not the other. First Floor The first floor contains most of the "creature comforts" of the house, including the Kitchen, Dining area, Library and Sitting Room. It also contains the "telephone closet" for contacting the house and the one and only bathroom in the entire hollow. Second Floor The Second floor contains the 5 bedrooms belonging to the members of Trouble Ahead. Basement The Basement contains only one acessable room. The floor of the basement is a wet dirt and the walls appear to be exactly the same wallpapering as the rest of the house (as if this was once its own floor and the house simply sunk a bit into the dirt). The Magic Mirror, apparently the heart of the house, sits against one wall. Attic The Attic contains a large storage area filled with paintings and clothing belonging to the former members of The Deep End. The key to the attic was, until recently, in the possession of Dr. Steven Chandler. Security The House has a number of security mesures to insure outsiders to not enter uninvited- *'The Perimeter Fence'- surrounding the house is a large wrought iron fence and hedge row that provides not only physical protection, but concealment as the house is difficult to see from up close. *'The Wards'- The house has some form of magical defense against intruders, blocking those who do not "own" the house from entering without struggle. The Baron Crayle once remarked that someone with sufficiently powerful Wyrd could break these wards, but they are still quite strong. *'The Mask'- The house has recently shown a power to weave Wyrd illusions, allowing it to defend itself against Lord Vallum when he came to investigate the house. Amenities The house has many wonderful services it performs for it's owners- *'Butler Service'- The house cooks and maintains an extensive pantry of "real" foods, though the brands all seem to be from times in the early- to mid-20th century. *'Maid Service'- The house cleans up after its owners, making beds, reorganizing bookshelves to be alphabetical, generally keeping the house tidy. There is one area where it notably does not act as a maid- the house does NOT wash clothing (though it will put clean clothing away, so long as they are folded). *'The Man in the Mirror'- for some time it was assumed that the mirror was a part of the house and as such was used as a tool by the members of trouble ahead, nearly getting them killed on several occasions. Exits and Entrances There are 4 exits and entrances to the hollow, 3 of which are known. *'ICL Student Union' *'Nellie's Apartment' *'The Hedge' *'Prince Martin's apartment' At the Estate Agent's In the Brandywine Garden.png|Reflecting Ball in the Garden Brandywine Lamp.png|In the Study Screen shot 2010-11-09 at 10.46.49 PM.png|The Mirror Category:Trouble Ahead Category:Hollow Category:The Hedge Category:Location Category:Imperial